Raise your head and taste the courage
by luacuof
Summary: I asked myself how would George and Percy get along after Fred's death. This is how I answered.


George was waiting outside his brother's door. What he was precisely waiting for, he neither could tell; surely you can't wait to hear a "come in" if you don't even knock and you stand there like a statue staring at the fine grains of the door's wood. So George forced himself to knock on the door and before he could change his mind his brother's voice invited him in.

Percy raised his eyes from the documents he was reading. A flash of disappointment and concern crossed his eyes as he saw _that_ brother on the door. "Can I talk to you?" that brother said.

"As you like" he answered in quite a cold and pragmatic tone. He had made a resolution not to make George feel guilty, to be kind to him, but his wound was still too fresh and he was too little magnanimous to succeed in respecting his own purpose. His brother sat on the bed, in clear discomfort. He stared at nothing for a while. "Every single word I said to you... it was to myself I wanted to say it". His statement slowly fell in the silence.

"Every word" George continued, with the same vacant gaze. It seemed like talking was very painful to him. "That it was your fault. That you should've protected him. That you let them kill him. That you should've _shielded him with your body_." He smiled piercingly at the thought he really had said something so cruel. "Imagine I said everything to myself. Only, it hurt too much, so I had to blame it on somebody else" he shrugged. "On you because you were there and, you know, _I wasn't_. I don't know if you will forgive me, I'm not going to ask you to, I just wanted you to know this."

As Percy obstinately remained silent, George stood up from the bed and headed straight for the door, his head bowed.

"I've already forgiven you" said Percy in a whisper, and in that very moment he knew with utter clearness he had already forgiven his brother right after he had furiously yelled at him that night, in the castle, by Fred's corpse. He had forgiven him right after, when George had fallen on his knees, worn-out, his hands gripping his hair, crying his soul out like a terrified child.

George stopped and turned to look at his brother. They really looked at each other for the first time since that night. Maybe for the first time since many years before that night. Percy stood up and came closer to his brother. "George... it wasn't your fault neither" he said, his voice trembling, but trying to sound firm. George shook his head slowly, looking at the pavement.

"It was. Mine... and his. We didn't protect each other. I wasn't there watching over him when it happened. He wasn't there watching over me. That's it". He stepped towards the window, as to back off from Percy's eyes. He stared at the sunset beyond the hills, slightly tightening his eyelids. "We could all in all easily take both our asses back home. Probably, no one could kill him if I were by his side, and the same for me. Instead, we had to listen to... what, courage?" he pronounced that word with cynical contempt.

"As true Gryffindors" Percy feebly tried.

"Oh well, what a wonderful result! See what the price to pay was! The truth... is that we were two perfect idiots. We couldn't take seriously even a fucking war".

Percy, behind his back, didn't know what to answer. George leaned on the windowsill, still looking at the landscape. Short on ideas, Percy did the same, and gently put his hand over George's back. After a couple of thoughtful minutes, George snorted sarcastically. "You know, it feels like losing a bet." he said. "A stupid, fucking bet. The Weasley twins never _ever_ lose a bet. This time we did. It's quite easy. It's fair. You can't challenge fate too many times. We'll have to deal with it". He absently scratched a stain of damp on the windowsill with his nail, then stopped. "Well, no. This time I'll have to deal with it alone" he concluded, lapidary. Percy opened his mouth to say "you're not alone" but he immediately closed it with a pang to his heart. He was. George was alone, and he could not help him in any way, nor could anyone. So he hugged him, in silence.

"And he's the one who's better now, 'cause he doesn't see, he doesn't feel the pain, he doesn't give a fuck about the war, about our broken dream, about _me_" said George, with the chocked voice of a crying person. The stayed that way, awkwardly hugging for a while, then George got out from his brother's arms. He saw Percy was crying too. He didn't find anything to say.

"Courage was your only fault, George. It's something you can be proud of. Only courage betrayed you" said Percy, heroically recovering his pompous scowl from old times. George nodded, smiling cynically. "Oh yes, courage really did fuck us. You make some projects for your life, that possibly include having a twin brother by your side, you put all your efforts and your good purposes in them, and then courage comes and _boom! _It sends your life in a completely different direction, that unfortunately doesn't include a twin. Or blows it away, as for Fred. But we can surely say it was worth it, yes". George shut up, overwhelmed with bitterness.

Percy sat on the bed. He had shivered at George's "boom". He could still clearly hear the explosion that killed Fred echoing in his head. His brother's destructive fierceness prostrated him, made his painful and fragile tentatives to rebuild a decent living pathetically crumble and fall. He hid his face in his hands, unable to bear more. George looked as his shoulders shaking in the silent cry. Suddenly he felt closer to him than he ever was in his whole life.

"Percy, I'm sorry. Listen. You are right. Courage is the only thing I should appeal to now. The only this that is left to me and that I should be grateful to have. Soon supper will be ready. Tomorrow will come, then tomorrow again. In time, things will fix in some other way. I'll make it. _We_ will make it."

Percy sighed.

As if on purpose, just a few second later Molly called the family for supper from downstairs.

"We will make it" George repeated as his brother stood up, and he really, really wished he could believe his own words.

_Hey there! This is the first fanfic I write in English, since it is not my mother-tongue. I found it more difficult than I thought. I hope it's correct, but if it's not I'd be so glad if someone pointed out my mistakes for me. Of course, a review will be appreciated even more. Thank you!_


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